New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said of illegal aliens last week at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, "Although they broke the law by illegally crossing our borders…our city's economy would be a shell of itself had they not, and it would collapse if they were deported. The same holds true of the nation."

Bloomberg and other elected officials who value the economic impact of illegal aliens' labor over the cultural decimation wrought by our acquiescence to illegals' demands should be swiftly removed from office. Those we elect to make laws must not be allowed to compromise their enforcement, which undermines our unique American culture.

In America, we have one constitution, one set of laws, one flag, one language and one identity known as "One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." The U.S. must not make the same mistake with the illegal aliens in our country that Europe made decades ago by assuming that millions of Muslims, gaining easy entry, would assimilate into their culture.

Tony Blankley, author of The West's Last Chance, points out the destructive impact multiculturalism has had in Europe, and the lessons we must learn in America to prevent history from repeating itself. Blankley states, "European governments accepted the multicultural belief that Muslims would mesh smoothly with the legal, economic and cultural unification of Europe through a constitutionally defined, sovereign European Union."

Europeans could not have been more naïve. Instead of assimilating into the cultures of individual European nations, Muslims separated themselves from society. Encouraged by European governments to practice their religion, the most radical Muslim extremists carried out the mission they believe their religion demands – jihad of the sword against all non-Muslims.

In America, we must learn the lessons of Europe. If we compromise entry into this country to any ethnic group, we will be expected to compromise our language, our patriotism, our flag and ultimately our democratic ideology.

Blankley cites a quote from former German chancellor Helmut Schmidt that portends the future for an America that fails to protect its borders and its culture. Schmidt, discussing Germany's welcoming of Turkish Muslims to his country, stated, "The concept of multiculturalism is difficult to make fit with a democratic society…(It had been a mistake) that during the 1960s we brought guest workers from foreign cultures into the country…(The cultural problems stemming from that mistake) could be overcome only by authoritarian governments."

We know the Islamic terrorists do not respect national borders, other cultures or political structures. Neither do millions of the illegal aliens – whom many in our government and the private sector want to reclassify as "guest workers" – present in our country. Every time this year illegal aliens have protested legislation that would seal our borders and enforce immigration laws, television cameras have captured scores of Mexican flags and homemade signs claiming the U.S. stole the American Southwest from Mexico.

We must look at the big picture. The war on terrorism is not merely a war waged in Iraq or a war strictly against Islamic terrorists, and the desire to protect our borders and enforce our laws does not make us racists. The true enemy is permissiveness and multiculturalism, which threaten our democratic ideology and culture.

Since 1954 Americans have pledged allegiance to our flag with a vow that ends "One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." That one powerful sentence explains what it means to be an American, and to accept our culture cultivated over two hundred years. It means that citizenship must be earned, not given away. It means we worship the Judeo-Christian God and seek peace with each other, not death toward non-believers. It means we are a nation comprised of citizens with racial backgrounds and religious beliefs representative of every corner of the globe, but as U.S. citizens we are indivisible against envious nations who seek to divide us. Finally, it means that only as an indivisible melting pot whose citizens respect the rule of law, respect our national borders and political system, can liberty and justice be guaranteed for all.

This melting pot known as the United States of America is the most prosperous nation on Earth. Our differences are respected, but patriotism is expected from those who claim America as their homeland. That is what has made us a great nation.